Gerätsbegriff

Gerätsbegriff is a German term used primarily in philosophy of technology and media studies. It literally translates as “concept of the device” or “device concept” and denotes a way of theorizing artifacts (Geräte) as more than mere tools. The term emphasizes that devices are mediating elements that participate in shaping human action, perception, and social arrangements, rather than being neutral instruments.

Etymology: from Gerät (device, apparatus) and Begriff (concept). In German-language literature, it is used to discuss how technologies function within practices and infrastructures, and how they are entangled with institutions, standards, and networks.

Usage and interpretation: The Gerätsbegriff is deployed to compare different configurations of technology, to analyze the way devices support or constrain activities, and to study how infrastructures of devices organize knowledge production and everyday life. In phenomenology and post-phenomenology, discussions around the ready-to-hand and the role of artifacts can be framed with the Gerätsbegriff to highlight the practical embeddedness of tools.

Relations to other concepts: It differs from simply speaking of a tool, function, or hardware by stressing relationality and system-level effects. It is often used in discussions of digital infrastructures, automation, and the social shaping of technology.

See also: Gerät, Technologie, Technikphilosophie, Postphenomenology, Industrie 4.0.

Note: The term appears with varying emphasis across authors; no single canonical definition is universally accepted.